Jesus and the woman caught in adultery

Jesus and the woman caught in adultery is a story from the New Testament of the Christian Bible. It is in John 7:53–8:11.

In the story, Jesus was teaching in the Second Temple after coming from the Mount of Olives. A group of scribes (record keepers) and Pharisees (Jewish teachers) interrupt Jesus and speak to him. These people do not like Jesus, so they want to trick him into saying something wrong. They bring in a woman and say she was caught in adultery: having sex with a man while married to another man. They say that for punishment, she should be killed by stoning, according to the law of Moses. They ask Jesus for his answer. He starts to write something on the ground with his finger, but when they ask him again, he answers. He says that a person who has never sinned (done something bad) should throw the first stone. The scribes and Pharisees know that they have all sinned, so they leave. Jesus asks the woman if anyone has condemned her, and she answers no. Jesus says that he, also, does not condemn her. He tells her to go and sin no more.

The passage
John 7:53–8:11 in the New Revised Standard Version:

Meaning
The ideas in this story are important in Christian thought. There is a message of mercy and forgiveness, and a call for holy living, without sin. The phrases "go and sin no more" and to "cast the first stone" are in common use.

History of the passage
Most scholars agree that this story was not in the earliest versions of the Gospel of John. It was added later. Scholars learned this by reading these early versions, or manuscripts.

References

Category:Gospels
Category:Jesus
Category:Adultery